ABSTRACT
How can psychologists help survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) during and after armed conflict? In her seminal monograph on trauma and recovery, Herman (1997[1992], p. 4) argues that the therapist must: “integrate the clinical and social perspective on trauma without sacrificing either the complexity of individual experience or the breadth of political context”. But, what does that really mean? How to help a victim whose body has become a battlefield of war? How to ensure that the human rights of the survivors of these crimes are addressed during and after war in a socio-political landscape, where values and norms are in flux? While it is clear that gender-based violence “impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of human rights and fundamental freedoms under general international law or human rights conventions” (Ross, 2009, p. 442), it may not be evident how to address these violations in the transitional landscape from conflict to post-conflict settings.
